There have always been a lot of arguments about the rules of table football, in the old days each pub or cafe had its own house rules, and even recently different table types and national associations had their own sets of rules.

All this has now changed, as the International Table-Soccer Federation has brought rulemakers from all major traditions together to formulate a universal set of Official Rules of the game, which have been adopted worldwide, and on all types of table, in 2007. These run to a total of 17 pages, and can be found at:

http://www.table-soccer.org/rules

The following is a simplified set of rules, based on the ITSF rules, which should cover play in non-official circumstances, e.g. at home, school/college, pub/club or workplaces. For official tournaments players should familiarise themselves with the official rule book.

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Basic Foosball Rules

1 No Spinning – it is a spin if the rod rotates more than 360˚ before striking the ball OR after striking the ball. If a ‘goal’ is disallowed the ball goes to the opponents defence, otherwise to the midfield.

2 Kick-Off – Teams toss a coin for first kick-off (or table side) at the start of the game. Subsequent kick-offs are to the team conceding the most recent goal. Play starts with the ball stationary on the midfield (5-bar). Ask if your opponent is ready to play, and the ball must touch two 5-bar players before it can be played forward in a pass or shot.

3 Dead Ball – A ball on the table is declared ‘dead’ if it cannot be reached by any player figure. If the ball is dead between opposing 5-rods, play is re-started with a new midfield kick-off to the team which conceded the last goal. If the ball goes dead behind the midfield rods, it is re-started in the nearest defensive area. Ensure your opponent is ready to re-start play. The ball must touch two players before being passed or shot.

4 Ball off table – The ball is ‘out’ if it leaves the playing area, defined as the area inside the cabinet or directly above it, including the edges of the table. If the ball hits scoring markers, ashtrays etc and rebounds into play it is dead. Play is re-started in defence by the team which did not initiate the most recent shot (i.e. if the ball is shot by the attacking team and is deflected out of the table by the defending team, it goes to the defence of the defending team). Ensure your opponent is ready to re-start play. The ball must touch two players before being passed or shot.

5 Bounce-outs – a ball which enters the goal and bounces out counts as a goal. Play is re-started with a new midfield kick-off to the team which conceded that goal.

6 Passing – a stopped or pinned ball (‘pinned’ means trapped against the playing surface or side-wall, or where the ball touches the front or back of the player figure before the motion of the pass) cannot be passed directly from the midfield to the forward rod, nor directly from defence to midfield, the ball must touch another player figure and be in motion when a pass is attempted. The ball may only touch the side-wall twice when in midfield.

7 Time Limits – The ball must leave the rod of possession within 10 seconds on the midfield, or within 15 seconds on the forward rod or defence (goal and defence rods count as one rod). Time limits start when the ball comes in range of any player figure on the rod.

8 Time Outs – Teams are allowed 2 time outs per game of up to 30 seconds each. A time out can only be called by the team in possession of the ball and when the ball is stopped or pinned. Either team may call a time out when the ball is not in play (e.g. between balls or when the ball is dead or off the table).

9. Change of Position – either team may change positions (between attack & defence) only between balls, during a time out or before/after a penalty shot. The team with possession must change first.

10 Fouls – no distracting an opponent, spinning (see above), jarring (moving the table such that the roll of the ball is affected), reaching into the playing area without opponents permission (e.g. for dead ball) , unsportsmanlike conduct etc. Penalty is possession to the other team, who have option to continue play (e.g. if foul results in an own-goal from the offending team). In the event of a jar possession is given to the rod which would otherwise have caught the ball.

11 Have Fun!! - Please note that these simplified rules are designed to improve your enjoyment of the game, official ITSF tournament rules are more complex, and can be found at: